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Friday, June 21, 2013

Okay, so I originally posted this from my iPad, and the pics didn't come through...so I'm trying again!

Hey guys just a quick post to give you a look at my end of the year t-shirt design, I had a few of you ask for a better picture so here you go! For my Gwinnett County people, I am still working on the contact information for the person who printed the t-shirts...she was GREAT and her prices were affordable!

Wednesday, June 19, 2013

Here are a few pictures of my new classroom. I will probably be able to go and "get my hands dirty" sometime mid-July. I have BIG plans for this room. My Pinterest boards are on major OVERLOAD! Guess that's what you do when you are waiting to move into your house and classroom. I'm going to be pretty busy in July and August!

So here is what it looks like when I first walk in the door...the desks and chairs are weird, really really weird. I may be going to tables instead of desks....I'll take a close up of them soon. (The chairs only have 2 legs!)

Side view of my room....SMART board! I'm going to have to train myself on this! I'm a Mimio girl.

My storage area...Plus: GREAT amount of storage! Negative: not movable and are painted in school colors of green and purple...not really going to match my new decor :)

To the right is the student desktop center...just want you to see all angles so when I reveal you will know what WAS there!

And once again this is good storage but...once again it's a built in, so it's not moveable! But I have big plans for this area.

And now for my first project for my room...keep in mind that ALL of my craft stuff is still in storage, so my hands have been really tied right now. But I did pick this fella up at a thrift store for three bucks, and gave him a little upgrade. Now what am I going to do with him in my class you ask??? Stay tuned!

Sunday, June 9, 2013

As I mentioned in my previous post...I now have a job! This past week I actually got to meet my employer in person for the first time, yep you heard correctly the first time.

It started off with some major revamping of my resume. For some of us we probably have not had to update our resumes for years and it becomes a huge task. Fortunately or unfortunately (depends on how you want to look at it) I had to update mine two years ago when I was displaced. However, before that it was over 7 years old. Once that was done I began combing through school websites looking for job listings. A lot of schools in the Oregon area use EdZapp, so I had to make a profile and remember to check it constantly. Other school would have you subscribe to their pages and get email updates as to when things were posted.

One of the hardest things was the school schedule difference. When my district was asking for transfers and such the schools in Oregon were on Spring Break. So I waited patiently....okay maybe not too patiently. Then BAM! You could tell when Oregon was ready to hire because the notifications came pouring in. The hard part was keeping up with all of them and which ones I applied to. The biggest difference was the different districts in the area I was looking. I had to apply to the different districts even though I they were all part of the same county...much different then what I was use to.

I also had to start the process of getting my Oregon certification. One day I hope that the United States has ONE criteria for an education certificate...I mean we are going to Common Core, so maybe one day. I got the privilege of getting my fingerprints done twice (yep twice, didn't fill out the paperwork correctly the first time so they got shredded...not kidding). I got the chance to pay almost $200 as well. Gotta love that. But once all was said and done I now hold an Oregon Teaching Certificate...it is however a provisional. I do have to complete a Civil Rights test and a content area test in 18 months. Which is more money (of course).

So thus began the application submission process. I applied for a Media Specialist job in Eagle Point High School (Eagle Point, Oregon). I figured why not try something different. I would love to be in a media/technology position...so I gave it a shot. BINGO! I got an interview...even better a Skype interview. We figured out the time change and scheduling differences and set it up.

It's an interesting experience for sure! They actually showed me "their view" and there I was on a large screen TV in a conference room. Slightly intimidating. But once it was all said and done I was confident. It felt great to get it under my belt and make some connections with people in Oregon (get my name out there). I was pretty excited! They even used an iPad to check out my blog right there in the interview!!!!

The next day I got a phone call for yet another Skype interview. This was with the same district but an elementary school position. Once again we had to deal with some schedule conflicts due to the time difference. It boiled down to my teacher workday, during my lunch break. I talked to my TST (tech guy) and asked about Skype through the school, and of course it was prohibited. Therefore I had to do the next best thing...find free local WiFi and Skype interview from there....so I did what any Southern girl would do and hoped in my borrowed truck (my car was already in Oregon), and headed over to Chic-fil-a. Yep...I completed the Skype interview in my truck, in the Chic-fil-a parking lot using their internet! NOT KIDDING!!!!

Needless to say when we first began they did notice I was in a vehicle :) I apologized for not being more professional but I stated I knew this interview was important I did everything I could to make it work....they loved it and though it was great.

Right away they let me know that I was getting this interview because of my interview with the high school, they felt I was a great interview and candidate but I was definitely elementary school oriented. My first thought, I guess I didn't get the Media Specialist job. So I continued with the interview and it went really well. I was so happy to hear those same terms and acronyms that we used in my county. Now I'm not saying I have nothing to learn but it was great and comforting hearing some of the familiar terms and such.

Within 12 hours I got a phone call!!!!! I had a job offer! Due to school not being out in Oregon yet they didn't know which school or position, but I HAD A JOB! I was also offered to be an assistant basketball coach for the high school (during that previous interview they had asked about my experience and wanted to be sure I was interested)....when they gave my name to the elementary HR group they mentioned they were still interested in me being an assistant coach! I'm THRILLED! My two loves and passions...teaching and basketball!

Upon my arrival last week I went up and visited the district office (way way different then what I was use to), but the people were so receptive and helpful.

this is the HR office in Oregon

the one in GA...and it's not even half of the building!

I got my assignment....5th grade at a school call Eagle Rock Elementary. The next day I went and visited the school, SO CUTE! Yep I called a school cute! It's also small and felt so relaxed. I will be one of two...yep two 5th grade teachers. I came from a school that had 6 fifth grade classes. The actual set up of the school is inviting and "comfortable". I fell in love with it right away. Now I just can't wait to get into my classroom and start "diving in". I'll post pictures of it all as soon as I am able.

these pics don't do it much justice...I'll post more later :)

Oh did I mention that this is the view from my classroom window????

Here is a link for some information about the school...it totally screams Oregon school and after reading about what they were trying to do when constructing it I can now see why: http://www.batzerconstruction.com/2004/12/eagle-rock-elementary/